Monterey, Carmel and Pacific Coast Explorer from San Francisco
Description
This tour traverses the breathtaking scenery on the famous Pacific Coast Highway. Upon arriving in historic Monterey, you will have time to explore the fascinating sea creatures at the Monterey Bay Aquarium and stroll among the shops on Cannery Row. The tour will follow the coast through the beautiful little town of Pacific Grove on the way to the 17 Mile Drive. The drive finishes up at the enchanted town of Carmel-by-the-Sea where you’ll can explore the boutique shops on Ocean Avenue or be dazzled by the white sandy beach.
Tour Options
Itinerary
Monterey Bay is a bay of the Pacific Ocean located on the coast of the U.S. state of California.
Admission is not included. Monterey Bay Aquarium is a nonprofit public aquarium in Monterey, California. Known for its regional focus on the marine habitats of Monterey Bay, it was the first to exhibit a living kelp forest when it opened in October 1984.
Cannery Row is the waterfront street in the New Monterey section of Monterey, California. It is the site of a number of now-defunct sardine canning factories. The last cannery closed in 1973. Today it has many restaurants and hotels, several of which are located in former cannery buildings, and a few historic attractions. Some privately owned fishing companies still exist on Cannery Row, housed on piers located a short distance from the historic district frequented by tourists.
Although the route has changed since it opened in 1881, 17-Mile Drive is still exactly 17 miles long. More than 1.5 million visitors pass through 17-Mile Drive every year. Iconic Landmarks along famous 17-Mile Drive include The Lone Cypress, as well as Spanish Bay and Pebble Beach Golf Links.
Pebble Beach Golf Links is a public golf course on the west coast of the United States, located in Pebble Beach, California.
The Lone Cypress is a Monterey cypress tree in Pebble Beach, California. Standing on a granite hillside off the 17-Mile Drive, the tree is a Western icon, and has been called one of the most photographed trees in North America.
Carmel-by-the-Sea is a small beach city on California's Monterey Peninsula. It's known for the museums and library of the historic Carmel Mission, and the fairytale cottages and galleries of its village-like center. The Scenic Bluff Path runs from surf spot Carmel Beach to bird-rich Carmel River State Beach, with a scuba entry point. South lie the sea animals and whaling museum of Point Lobos State Natural Reserve.
Bird Rock Vista is stop #7 on 17-Mile Drive and a wildlife hot spot.
Beautiful white sandy beaches.
Stop #10 on 17-Mile Drive is the wonderful Cypress Point Lookout which looks out, to the southwest, over a small, white sand beach making for an excellent sunset spot.
Lovers Point State Marine Reserve is one of four small marine protected areas located near the cities of Monterey and Pacific Grove, at the southern end of Monterey Bay on California’s central coast.
Tourist information center in Monterey, California.
Seal Rock Creek Beach is a small sandy beach along the 17 Mile Drive in Pebble Beach, CA. This white sand beach is at the mouth of Seal Rock Creek which flows intermittently. Just offshore is Seal Rock and a little to the north is Bird Rock.
Vista point in Del Monte Forest, California.
Highlights
What's included
Traveller Ratings
Important Information
- Infants and small children can ride in a pram or stroller
- Service animals allowed
- Public transportation options are available nearby
- Suitable for all physical fitness levels
- Meals are not included but available for purchase throughout the day.
- Exact destinations & itinerary may differ due to weather, road conditions, and the guide's discretion.
Reviews(81)
We were picked up 40mins late. The excuse was traffic restrictions because of a road race. It then took more than an hour to get out of SF. This could have been planned for by the tour company. The bus was not in a great state of repair. It had a cracked windscreen a bad seat and damaged bodywork. The guide/ driver was pleasant enough but did not offer a "guided tour" and only spoke occasionally on the long trip to Monteray and on the two hour trip back from Carmel. Our stops in Monteray and Carmel were only 30 mins and 120 mins. If you see this tour as a long journey to Monteray and back with about 3.5 hrs in the towns and Pebble Beach Drive it could be for you. We were quite disappointed.
Hi there, Thank you for taking the time to share your feedback. We’re truly sorry to hear that your Monterey, Carmel, and Pacific Coast experience did not meet expectations. We understand how frustrating the delayed pickup and extended travel time must have been, especially when it affected the overall pacing of the day. We also regret that the vehicle condition and level of guiding did not reflect the standard we aim to provide. Your comments regarding communication, timing, and overall experience have been noted and will be reviewed carefully with our operations team. While we’re glad to hear your guide was pleasant, we understand that the overall experience felt disappointing and not as immersive as expected. Feedback like yours is important in helping us improve both planning and guest experience delivery. Thank you again for sharing your thoughts, and we’re sorry the tour did not live up to your expectations.
Beautiful sightseeing coast, with Monterey Bay and restaurants , the awesome beaches and golf areas, very far from Sah Francisco, I recommend this tour.
Hi there, Thank you so much for the 5 stars! We’re really happy to hear you enjoyed the beautiful coastal scenery around Monterey, Carmel, and the Pacific Coast, as well as the beaches, golf areas, and dining spots along the way. We truly appreciate your recommendation and hope to see you again on another adventure soon!
Loved this trip. Beautiful scenery down the coast and enjoyed all the stops. So much to see and do. Loved Monterey and Carmel by the Sea
Thank you so much for sharing this! We’re really glad you loved the trip and got to enjoy the beautiful coastal views and all the stops along the way. Monterey and Carmel-by-the-Sea are such special places—happy to hear they stood out to you. We truly appreciate you joining us and hope to see you again on another adventure soon!
Don is an excellent tour guide. He is very knowledgeable. Took us to Monterey, Pebble Beach and Carmel all beautiful places. He gave clear instructions where the bus would be parked so no one could get lost. I highly recommended him for your adventure. Job well done Don. Thank you!
Thank you for your wonderful review! We’re so glad you enjoyed exploring Monterey, Pebble Beach, and Carmel with Don. It’s great to hear that his knowledge and clear guidance made your adventure smooth and memorable. We’ll be sure to pass along your kind words to him!
Outstanding tour with Don. We covered so much. I’d highly recommend. My only issue was as a solo traveler — older, who had recently (a few months ago) healed from pneumonia in both lungs — for me having to get back to my hotel on my own was a royal pain. Please consider reinstating dropping people off at their hotels after an 11 hour tour or at least picking a better drop off nighttime location than dark Post Street location. At least drop off at a well lit hotel and active area. Even a man in my group asked “THIS is where you are leaving us???” My only Don complaint was he said he’d not noticed if the Cafe the bus dropped off across from would be open. Kind of important (since I’m a single older woman who needed to step inside somewhere to use my cell phone to call taxi). Luckily Don saw, and I saw, the Cafe was open (only with 5 remaining minutes). I was able to make my call inside. As I exited the Cafe to get into the cab a homeless guy was yelling at me (loudly and strangely) from across the street — 2, 3 times. I was shocked by this street guy’s aggressiveness because he could see I was GETTING into the taxi. He’s yelling at me from across the street over and over as I’m there WITH the taxi driver. How would it have been if we were 5 minutes later, and I had to call for the taxi standing on the street across from this guy. Might have been fine, but would have felt unpleasant. People, especially, senior older women, do not go on vacation to worry. Even that gentleman, much younger than me did not like the Post Street drop off area. Try to at least do a drop off location at night, in the dark that is well lit, has activity, hopefully, even has restroom access. Post Street pick up might be fine in morning, not fine at night. Otherwise Don and the tour was GREAT.
Thank you for your detailed feedback! We’re thrilled you enjoyed the tour and that Don made it such a great experience. We appreciate your comments about the nighttime drop-off and will review options for better-lit, safer locations with restroom access, especially for solo travelers and seniors. Your suggestions will help us improve future tours. We’re glad you had a wonderful experience overall and hope to see you again!
The tour was great as far as getting to the places we wanted to see. The guide was not especially informative so it was more transportation than tour.
Thank you for your feedback. We’re glad you were able to visit the places you wanted to see. We’re sorry to hear the guide didn’t provide as much information as expected — we’ll review this with our team to ensure a more informative experience for future guests.
Very poor quality transport and disappointing experience. A lot of time on an uncomfortable min bus with little reward. Too many unnecessary stops to see similar views of the ocean. Over 2.5 hour stop in Monterey where there was nothing to do if you don’t want to go to the aquarium. Less than 1 hour stay in Carmel which would have been a much nicer destination to look around and shop. Driver who talked too much nonsense and drove too fast and asked for $20 per person tip. Overall extremely disappointing and poor value for money.
Thank you for sharing your feedback, and I’m very sorry your tour did not meet expectations. I want to clarify that all the stops made—including the viewpoints, Monterey, and Carmel—are part of the itinerary posted on our website, but we understand your concerns about how the time was allocated and will review this internally. We also take your comments about the driver’s behavior very seriously, especially regarding the mention of a specific tip amount. We are currently investigating this to ensure it’s addressed properly. If you’d like to discuss this further, please feel free to reach out to us at contact@extranomical.com or give us a call at +1-415-357-0700. Thank you again for bringing this to our attention.
Lovely wholesome experience… stops in Monterrey and Carmel were lovely!! We loved the Pigeon Point and Pebble Beach!!
Thank you for sharing this! We're so glad to hear you had such a lovely and wholesome experience. It’s great that Monterey, Carmel, Pigeon Point, and Pebble Beach all made an impression — they’re truly special stops. We appreciate you joining the tour and hope to welcome you back for more coastal views soon!
Great drive down Hwy 1. Our driver, Don, was excellent resource and logistics were well organized! Interesting nights and included all highlights that I wanted to revisit
Thank you for your wonderful review! We’re thrilled to hear that Don made your drive down Highway 1 enjoyable and informative, and that the tour’s logistics and highlights met your expectations. He’ll be delighted to hear your kind words!
Fabulous trip! We had a lovely lady driver and the most fabulous lady guide. She was such a great communicator and character. Her knowledge was expansive and she shared some great insights and travel tips. The bus was really comfortable and the ladies made sure we were all comfortable and content. The trip itself was fantastic. We saw great things and places and had a fantastic time. Pigeon Point lighthouse was a great stop on the way to Monterey and we loved Carmel. Great trip, throughly recommended!!
Thank you so much for your wonderful review! We’re thrilled to hear that both your driver and guide made your trip so enjoyable with their knowledge, communication, and care. We’re glad you loved the stops at Pigeon Point Lighthouse and Carmel, and that the bus was comfortable. It sounds like a truly memorable day — thank you for recommending the tour!
